AGRICULTURE

Agriculture was the chief economic activity in Guyana. Only the
coastal plain, comprising about 5 percent of the country's land area,
was suitable for cultivation of crops. Much of this fertile area lay
more than one meter below the high-tide level of the sea and had to be
protected by a system of dikes and dams, making agricultural expansion
expensive and difficult. In the 1980s, there were reports that the
200-year-old system of dikes in Guyana was in a serious state of
disrepair. Guyana's remaining land area is divided into a white sand
belt, which is forested, and interior highlands consisting of mountains,
plateaus, and savanna.

In the 1980s, sugar and rice were the primary agricultural products,
as they had been since the nineteenth century. Sugar was produced
primarily for export whereas most rice was consumed domestically. Other
crops included bananas, coconuts, coffee, cocoa, and citrus fruits.
Small amounts of vegetables and tobacco were also produced. During the
late 1980s, some farmers succeeded in diversifying into specialty
products such as heart-of-palm and asparagus for export to Europe.